The Civil Defense of the Gaza Strip announced on Saturday the death of seven people in bombings in the center of the Palestinian territory, which has been ravaged by two years of war. The Israeli army claims to have struck an “armed cell” of the Hamas Islamist movement.
“At around 01:40 this Saturday (00:40 in France),” seven people were killed and several others injured, “including four in critical condition,” said Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesperson for the first aid organization operating under the authority of Hamas. This happened after an “Israeli drone fired two missiles” near a police station in the Al-Bureij refugee camp.
“A gathering of civilians” was targeted, according to a hospital
The al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital near Deir el-Balah (center) reported receiving the bodies of six people, “as well as seven injured, including four in critical condition due to direct impacts to the face, chest, and other parts of the body.” According to this source, the Israeli strikes targeted “a gathering of displaced civilians near a mosque.”
Another nearby establishment, Al-Awda Hospital, reported receiving one body and two injured individuals. When contacted by AFP, the Israeli army stated that they had “struck an armed cell of Hamas that had approached the red line [marking the limit of Israeli troop withdrawal] and was planning to launch an attack against Israeli forces in the near future.”
Strikes despite the ceasefire
Israel and Hamas have accused each other of violating the ceasefire in effect since October 10, 2025, after two years of war triggered by an unprecedented attack by the Palestinian movement on Israeli soil on October 7, 2023. At least 749 Palestinians have been killed since October 10, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, under the authority of Hamas, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.
The Israeli army has reported five soldiers killed in its ranks since the beginning of the ceasefire. Given the restrictions on the media in Gaza and the challenges of accessing the area (international press is still not allowed by the Israeli authorities to go to Gaza), AFP is unable to independently verify information from the different parties.
